I Love Goals

Hey everybody. Good afternoon on this Monday. I hope you're having a wonderful day. And I hope that today is a day that you set some goals for the week. Because then, you can blog about The Weekly Chase too. Get there, do it! :)







I'm switching up the colors this week. Let's see how last week's goals stack up, yeah?

Groupon fitness class. Vlog. Shoe analysis. Yes! Yup! And no, but for a good reason. Plus I'm going this evening. It's really just because Paul decided he wanted to go too and our schedules didn't match up last week. I think that's an acceptable reason to move some things around. :)

Looking good, slick.

That was before my bootcamp class on Friday. Reppin' some sweatpink swag and a goofy face. The class kicked my butt pretty badly. It was upper arms and on asphalt. And I had no gloves. So my hands were pretty freaking tender when I went into work.

P.S. Have you ever tried cat push-ups? I cannot do them. Not a bit. I don't know if there's another name for them. But you're basically on all fours. Then you lift your knees up like it's no big deal and do some push-ups.

...................sure.

Onto this week's goals! 

Goal #1: Set up my blog to be pretty freaking fantastic. Yup, that's right. My blog is going through the big step transfer to self hosting. It's also getting a re-design that I could not be more excited about! I want to set it up to be glorious. And glorious it shall be. Obviously, more information will be coming on this. :)

Goal #2: Repeat my goals for last week. Is this cheating to put three goals into one? Nope. I don't think so. I want to form some sort of habits here. So I'm going to a fitness class again, vlog again, and go on a Philadelphia Runner date.

Goal #3: RUN. I must confess I've been slacking on the running front. I need to get my butt MOVING. I need some way to be inspired or motivated. That's where I'm having the troubles. I feel like my half is too far away to pull motivation from that. I know that's the wrong way to think about things, but it's where I am. And I need to get out of there!

Goal #4: Take another bubble bath. And go on a date. Oh man, am I putting two goals into one? Goal chunking is evidently the theme for this week. *Note: My bubble bath is not a date. So chunking does not mean killing two birds with one stone.

Love this guy.

I don't want this blog to be forever long, so I'm going to continue with my blog challenge tomorrow. Let's try to get through this Monday! I'm going to run some errands and then go for a bit of a run. Three miles are on my plate today. So I'm excited!

What are your goals for this week?

What Color Do You Sweat? {Giveaway!}

It's that time again!!






I've already confronted my goals a few days ago so you can head there if you want to check out how it went! (Spoiler Alert: there is a vlog!) With that said and done, I'm going to go ahead and declare my goals for the week!

Goal #1: Use my group fitness Groupon! I love living in Philadelphia for Groupons, because I think I get the opportunity to buy some pretty awesome ones. I bought a 30 Class Pass for Meta Body and I'm really excited because they have boot camp options. And I want to try some! So I'm going to start off slow so I can accomplish this. At least one class this week!!

Goal #2: Vlog. Oh, have you heard this one before? Yes I think you have. :) I just want to keep it up. I have my topic ready to go and stuff. So that should be happening sometime early this week.

Goal #3: Go get my feet sized up for some running shoes. I've got my eyes set on some, but I want to get them professionally sized and get an opinion on which ones will be good for my feet. Good thing I've got Philadelphia Runner to help me out. :)

Three goals this week. Get ready to go down!

So, now that we've got that under control! I've returned after a lovely weekend at the beach redder than I would have hoped. It's turning a little bit pink though, so I think that's a nice transition.

If that's not a nice enough transition, I wore my new sweat pink tank top on the beach. :)

So I've generally mentioned that I am a Sweat Pink Ambassador now for Fit Approach. That's pretty awesome itself. And I'm sure you've seen this floating around the blog world before, but I've got some stuff I want to share!

Instagram picture is a must.

Do you want to spice up your sneaks? Or do you want to do something else creative with pink shoelaces? I don't know about you, but colorful workout gear is my best friend. So taking a quick peak down at these babies while I'm running/jumping/pushing up is a quick way to pump me up.

And I've got some to give away! HINT: I don't have a million blog views so your chances are good! Enter!!

All you have to do is leave me a comment telling me how you are going to use these shoelaces. Yup, that's it. If you're putting them in your sneaks, tell me why! What you do! Anything! Get creative here, people! Depending on how many entries I get, I'll do a random number generator as well as pick the most creative/funny/impressing entry. But that's only if a good number of people comment. Otherwise, I'm sticking with the random. :)

Oh, do you want more entries? You can do a couple of things.

1. Follow me on Twitter! @RunPrincipessa
2. Tweet about this giveaway. I don't care what you say! I mean, I'd like it to be positive. Whatever floats your boat. Just make sure you mention my twitter handle.

And that's it! Just make sure you comment for each entry so I can count them! You have until Thursday, July 12 (12:00 noon EST) to enter. So get on that!!





Speaking of Sweat Pink, go check out this blog hop to discover some truly amazing blogs. And bloggers. You know, the people are important too. :)

That is all. Go kick butt today!! :)

Keep on Chasin'

It's that time again, folks! First, let me review my goals from last week. I wanted to stick to my training schedule and cater to my injured wrist. Well, first of all, my tendons are smiling once again! I really took it easy last week with the wrist. I probably babied it a little more than I should have, but hey. Anything to get it feeling better!

As far as sticking to my training plan, I actually changed it! I think I was going to be doing too much too fast and nobody wants to deal with those after effects. So I shimmied some stuff around and I'm ready to bang it out this week!

Speaking of.

Goal #1: A month or so ago I purchased the Tone It Up program because I was very, very curious about the umpteen million people talking about it. Well, I'm headed to the beach this Friday and so I thought this would be a good time to do the 5 Day Slim Down on the plan. I've done it once before, so I think I should be okay. I don't have measurements and I didn't weigh myself, I'm just interested in feeling confident and energized by the time the weekend comes! So my goal is to stick to it!

Side note, if you're doing it this week too, definitely contact me on Twitter and we can be supportive and all that jazz. :)

Goal #2: Vlog once this week! Last Friday I did my first ever vlog! I was really nervous about it for some reason, but I'm trying to get comfortable with the fact that everybody can watch me! Therefore, I am challenging myself to do more! Baby steps here, people!

But Wait! There's More!

That about wraps it up for goals, but I've got one more thing to share before I leave! I was recently chosen to be a new Sweat Pink Ambassador! Inspiring you all to be healthy and happy. ;) I was going to wait until everything was in order to blog about it, but Fit Approach has come out with a Race Program and I really want to share!

Basically, you can enter any race and represent your pink! You get some AWESOME swag when you sign up. You get your choice of a t-shirt or a tank top, a nifty wine glass, and some pink shoelaces. It's really very exciting and I think you should all sign up!

Have I baited you?? If so, head on over to this link to sign up. You want something more out of me? I see. Enter the code SPAAmandaF to grab a 10% discount. I better see everybody sporting some pink! Or at least some sweat. ;)

What are your goals for the week?

On the Chase

I'm BACK. After a short Thursday post, I went to the doctor and found out that I had overuse tendonitis in my right wrist. Lame. So I was on heavy wrist-rest this weekend which included no blogging and minimal tweeting. But I'm feeling better and I really want to participate in this new-fangled thing crafted by Melissa at Live, Love, & Run.




I just talked about goal setting in my Motor Behavior class this morning, so I am pumped to set me some goals. Most people who talk goals talk about setting Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic Time-based goals. But in class today, I saw something that really stuck with me. Challenging Attainable Realistic Specific. It's always good to remind yourself that goals are here for a reason: to push yourself.

Goal #1: Stick to my training schedule for the week. Today starts the first day of half marathon training and I am DEDICATING myself to it this time. I want it. I want it badly. And so I will train my butt off.

I'm going to a Phillies game tonight, as you can see! Sunday asks for five miles.

There isn't any cross training on the schedule. That's a topic for another day. So I'm going to see how the speed work goes. If I have to cut back to not injure myself, those will be the first days to go. After that, I'd cut the Saturday short runs and move the long runs to Saturday. I'm challenging myself with this plan, but I refuse to challenge myself to the point of injury!

Also, stretching/yoga/foam rolling/whatever gets me limber will happen EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. EVERYDAY.

Goal #2: Don't do anything to ruin the wrist! As you can see, today is a strength day. I need to modify, modify, modify. Sure, I can run without my wrist. But can I function in every day life without my wrist? Don't I sound like a brat. Yes, Amanda. You can if you need to.

I'm just sick of trying to wipe my butt with my left hand. Just saying.

What are your goals for the week? Link up if you have a post about it here!

What's An Ambassador?

Ooh la la!

I think (well, I know actually) that I've talked about one of my goals on here before. That goal was to become a FitFluential Ambassador. They ask for fitness fanatics to apply and one day I just bit the bullet and wrote out a (semi long-winded) application. If I got declined, I was at least looking to some helpful feedback for this here blog. But it turns out they liked it! I got an e-mail Wednesday night saying that I've officially been accepted!

Can you just for a quick second go here and look at the company I'm in? There are AMAZING bloggers in this community and I get butterflies just thinking about it. I'm so looking forward to making my blog better and more FitFluential by the day.

Oh, you don't have a blog? Don't worry! You can still be a FitFluential enthusiast! There's something for everybody and it's a wonderful community that I urge you to check out! :) My favorite description on their site promises that they aren't Stepford, so I promise you that you aren't going to join a cult of the same people!

While I'm waiting to get everything set up with them, I set out on a Pinterest Journey!

Oh this is exciting!

You may or may not have seen this hashtag being tossed around on Twitter lately. I have a HUGE list of goals I want to accomplish in my lifetime and I love making lists, so clearly this project was meant to be. Some highlights?

• Go visit the Olympics.
• Complete the Disney Coast to Coast Challenge.
• Take a barre class.
• Go white water rafting.

Honestly, I can go on for a bit here. If you want to see the whole thing, head over to my board and take a look! And definitely let me know if you have one! I will absolutely take a look at it and probably pin approximately four hundred things to mine.

Have a wonderful, wonderful Friday! I'll be studying my brains out today and then losing them tomorrow. ;)

What's on your fitness bucket list?

Hey June

WELCOME, JUNE. I am so excited that the J-month season is here. Not January. You know what I mean. I don't have much to report on today, but I'd like to come up with three goals that I want to achieve this month! I think three is a nice number to start with. Also it doesn't seem like a crazy overwhelming number. So without further ado!

• Strength train at least 2x a week. So I follow this amazing woman, Kelly Olexa, on Twitter. She's the founder of FitFluential. And she tweeted something about how she wishes people would stop wanting to "tone up" and start wanting to be strong. Obviously, I have nothing against the phrase toning up (or I wouldn't have bought their plan for $150 ;)), but I think she's on the right track. You gotta WORK for it. And I want it. So I'm gonna work! I put out a help call on Twitter and was pointed in the direction of Workout Nirvana. I've been plodding around her blog and doing some planning. 

• Stretch every day for a month. I've mentioned on here before how I've been doing some yoga now and again. But during a period of time that I'm not dancing excessively, I gotta stay a little bit bendy!

• Run for fun! I have a Color Me Rad run in Philly coming up on the 17th. And I only know how to train to be stressed and to doubt myself. I shatter that self-doubt as soon as I start the race. But this is a FUN 5k! And my first! So no stress. Just gotta have fun! In my tutu!

•  Bonus: Try my darndest to pass my personal training certification. I certainly don't know everything about fitness. But I'm learning! And I'm studying! But if I don't get it the first time around, it won't be the end of the world. And I'm not just saying that so I don't fail. I promise!

And so that's it! That's all I have to say for today! :)

What are your goals for this month?

Hanging in There

School is so close to being over. I had my last day of classes today and I couldn't be happier. I mean I guess I could. My professors could have cancelled all of my finals. BUT. Regardless of those tests, summer is coming. Granted, that means I get to start new classes, an internship, and work a lot more. But I think it's going to be better. :)

World Dance Day '12 at Northern Liberties. :)

So while it may look like I'm neglecting my blog ridiculously, I WILL be more dedicated to it in roughly one week. And hopefully I'll have a lot to blog about. I have some goals in the meantime!

• Choreograph a piece this summer.
• Get a library card instead of thinking about getting a library card.
• Try all sorts of workouts. And then actually blog about them.
• Eat (and cook!) better!
• Go on adventures!
• Become a FitFluential Ambassador? That would be cool. I've got a looooong way to go, I think!
• Keep dancing.
• Become a certified personal trainer. (Test is on 6/16!)
• Ride my bike more.
• Go to the beach.
• RUN!
• Have an amazing summer before my senior year! I'm so lucky to have two of them. Ayyy.

I'm really excited. I'm going to see the sunrise at Penn's Landing earrrrrly tomorrow morning because Temple is officially on study days. I've never actually seen a sunrise before. So I'm really excited. :)

Workout for the Day

I started my morning with the HIIT the Beach workout from the Beach Babe DVD. I quite liked it actually! It was short but I was definitely sweaty. That was my first time using the DVD, so I'll definitely tell you more about it as I discover it! I'll probably do a review too. Maybe.

Tonight is my last day of dance for the semester and we get to spend time with all of the new members this evening. We're going to have a stretch/strength session and then watch our DVD. It's going to be lovely. I love those dancers so much and I can't wait to be the captain of this crazy ship. :)

Who let these crazies take over?

Any exciting plans for the summer? :)

Happy March!

Pinterest. Duh. But I'm sure this is everywhere.

 Hooray! This year is progressing along quite nicely, if I do say so myself. I certainly hope this month does not disappoint, though following February gives it crazy high standards. As long as the weather works with me, I think we'll get along quite nicely?

Isn't there a thing about in like a lion out like a lamb for March? Who knows.

Speaking of March, Happy National Nutrition Month!!

I know, I'm a nerd. But I got really excited about it. For the whole month of March I am going to be entering my eats onto MyFitnessPal and seeing how things are going! I really don't want to lose any weight, I'm just curious as to how the things I eat stack up, you know? So far it's made me drink more water and cut the snacking, which is kind of awesome!

Another thing I'm doing in honor of this month is to go talk to a nutritionist. Because I'm starting this whole running thing and I tend to not eat when I get too stressed, I thought I'd talk to somebody about it and make sure I'm getting the nourishment I need!

BECAUSE NUTRITION IS AWESOME, OKAY!?

I would love to come home to these. Love.

Onto the running front now! Yesterday I played some racquetball and then had two miles on the schedule. I know technically racquetball isn't a strength workout, but because my days were all messed up, I decided to give my muscles a little break.

The run. Oh, the run.

I had absolutely zero motivation to go on this run. It was dark outside, so that meant another tedious session of me staring longingly at the numbers, hoping they would increase just a little faster. Dinner was in the oven and I could smell it's deliciousness creeping through our apartment.

I JUST DID NOT WANT TO RUN!

But alas. I threw on some workout-type clothes and ran downstairs.

It was this shirt. So it would match my face, you know?

Alright. I read running blogs fairly regularly. I love hearing about peoples' times, how they felt, what they ate, etc. And for the most part I read them and it goes something like this:

"I didn't want to do eight miles but I did anyway....it was great!!...The first mile sucked...But the rest were awesome!"

Guys, what if I can't run ten miles? Two miles and I was STRUGGLING. I just felt awful and I couldn't breathe right and it just was not my night. I felt like such a failure and was seriously doubting ever being able to run ten miles. I keep telling myself that it's just the mentality of staring at the wall on the treadmill but I don't know, man.

But I did it anyway. Just so I could cross it off. Then I came back upstairs and ate delicious ziti. And that was that.

LAME.

Something not lame? Spring Break. I wish I were going somewhere nice and warm, but catching up on sleep might actually be in the forecast for me. I approve of this message.

How do I fix this little running problem I have here? Or how are you celebrating Spring Break?